The Cost of Freedom
by MissingMommy
Summary: Sirius was never fond of hs family's business, but he's always stayed to look after this brother. A trip to New York City changes all that, and he finds the means to start a new life. :: Muggle Mafia!AU


I'm the Harpies' Captain, season 6.

Note: I was inspired by the hitman storyline from Pulp Fiction. This is a Muggle Mafia!AU set in the 1920s.

Word count: 2926

* * *

Sirius blows smoke into the air as the door to the balcony opens. His brother nods his head towards the door. He doesn't have to say anything for Sirius to understand—they're being summoned.

Extinguishing his cigarette with regret, Sirius follows Regulus to the drawing room. His parents are waiting for them there, his father sipping from a glass that has a pearly-white liquid while reading the paper and his mother playing the piano. Sirius recognizes the tune as one he heard often growing up.

His father folds the paper before he puts it to the side. He looks over Sirius and Regulus, before holding the bottom of the glass where it's eye level. The music tapers off when he starts to speak. "The newest batch of Amortentia is ready to be shipped to America. Somebody's poaching our clients, and I want them dealt with. Therefore, the two of you will be arriving with the shipment to deal with the situations that our men are having difficulty handling."

Orion's lip curls into a grimace on the last word. Sirius barely manages to keep from mimicking his father; Orion's idea of handling a situation is putting two bullets in his rival's head and two in their heart. It's to send a message, his father once told him when he was too young to handle a gun, but too old to not understand the trade. He's never fond of his father's idea of messages.

Regulus seems to stand taller at the idea of their future task. "When do we leave?"

"It's shipping in two days. I trust the two of you won't let me down," Orion says, his dark eyes flickering between him and Regulus. There's an underlying threat in his message—failure is not an option. He picks up his newspaper. Sirius takes it for a dismissal.

There's a feeling in the pit of his stomach that he can't quite describe. He swallows thickly and manages to say, "Yes, Father."

Something's not right, he can feel it in his bones. He's learned to trust his gut instinct; it's what keeps him alive. But an order is an order and he packs for America, hoping that he's wrong this time.

* * *

The night they make port in New York City, Sirius sighs in relief. Being confined to a boat made his skin crawl. He doesn't stick around to oversee the unloading of the merchandise. He lights a cigarette as he makes his way through the streets.

He wonders until he finishes his cigarette and finds the right address—the men his father employs have assured him that the Blind Pig was the best place to get alcohol. He knocks and takes a step back, shoving his hands into his pockets. The peakhole moves revealing dark eyes that stare at him.

Sirius says the word his men gave him. There's a long moment that dark eyes just stares at him. Then the peakhole gets recovered and the door swings open. He takes his hat off as he enters the room. Going through a second door, music fills the air.

There's more people than Sirius was expecting in the dark, smoky room, all drinking and humming along with the music. He makes his way towards the barkeep, navigating through the crowd as quickly as possible. He taps the counter twice.

The barkeep pushes a glass of pearly-white liquid towards him and he exchanges it for a few coins. His father has always forbade them from tasting the merchandise, but curiosity gets the best of him. He swirls the liquid in the glass before taking a sip.

It tastes divine. Amortentia has been named the alcohol of love, and he can feel why; he feels at peace, where nothing matters beside the liquid in his glass. He feels happy. He tastes a second drink to chance that feeling.

He nearly forgets the reason why he's at the Blind Pig. With a little reluctance, he listens to the crowd and filters through their conversations. He buys drinks for some and completely disregards others. Drunk on love and happiness, the other patrons give up information about his family's rivals.

When he's about to call it a night, the door opens to reveal a woman wearing a champagne-colored dress. Her red hair makes it look like she's wearing a crown of fire. He takes his glass from the barkeep and watches as she walks to the bar.

The barkeep already has a glass of Amortentia to offer her. She flashes him a smile as she goes to drop three coins into the barkeep's hand.

Before she can, Sirius grins. "Please allow me to buy that for you."

She plucks the glass from the counter, taking a small sip. "Who would I be to deny you?"

"What's a beautiful woman like yourself doing in a place like this, dressed like that?" he asks, taking in the way that fabric hangs loosely from her body and falls to just below her knees.

"I don't dress like this to impress men," she replies, leaning closer to him. She digs into the purse she has. She pulls out a cigarette holder and a cigarette. "I dress like this because I want to. You don't know how dreadful corsets are."

Sirius laughs. He pulls out a match and lights her cigarette for her. He takes a sip of his drink, letting happiness wash over him. She allows him to pull her onto the small dance floor and spin her around and around. He can't remember the last time he's felt this peaceful.

He stumbles out of the bar sometime later, a grin on his face and a light feeling in his chest. It's not until he's at the house of one of his distant relative and he's getting out of his suit that he realizes all the money he had on him is gone. Laughter bubbles in his chest; he's impressed that she managed to pickpocket him.

* * *

It's easier than Sirius was expecting to track down the poachers—a bit of money in the right hands goes a long way. It's almost as if they wanted to be found, and he can't shake the feeling. His brother ignores his concern with a wave of his hand, grinning as he announces that they have the advantage.

It doesn't feel like an advantage when they approach the docks. A good portion of their money keeps the cops from patrolling the dock, and it seems that the Malfoys have been enjoying the benefits of their deal with law enforcement. It makes Sirius grind his teeth.

Despite the heavy feeling in his stomach, Sirius gives the orders for their men to surround the building. They have twenty men with them, almost every person they have in New York City, because he would rather be cautious; Regulus protested it, claiming that this only required the two of them.

He watches his men approach, pulling out his own pistol. He wanted nothing more than to let his men kill every man the Malfoys have, but he knows that he needs to be here, to deal with their enemies. Otherwise, the message wouldn't be sent and this would be useless.

They're well into the warehouse, finding nothing but the unmoving production machinery, when the first shot is fired. Sirius ducks reflexively, looking around for the source. The sound of gunfire rings his ears and he can't hear anything beyond his racing heart.

He sees his brother heading towards the stairs without help and swears before racing after him. It takes Sirius longer than he likes to make it to the stairs; he ignores his men, thinking only about protecting Regulus.

He advances slowly, checking each room before moving on. He shoots the few men he encounters. Then he sees his brother with his gun raised.

"This ends tonight," Regulus announces.

He can hear laughter over the ringing in his ears as he approaches quietly. His brother fails to notice him. Inside the room, a man with long blond hair leans against a desk, a glass of golden liquid in his hand; it's rumored to be liquid luck. Sirius recognizes him immediately as Lucius Malfoy, the son of the man trying to spread the Malfoy empire from Boston.

"Oh, there's two of you. I suppose you would need more than one person to handle things," he says. "Where are my manners? Would you like a glass of Felix Felicis?"

"We don't drink the merchandise," Regulus growls.

Sirius inhales sharply. Giving out information about their business is a rookie mistake. The sounds of the firefight are dying off and he doesn't know who has the advantage anymore.

"It must be boring to be you," Lucius says, taking a large swallow of his alcohol. "Not to be able to sample your merchandise. Felix Felicis is quite divine, and we don't have rules against tasting. Here, you must have a glass."

Neither of them move as Lucius pours two glasses.

"I thought the Blacks would at least know their manners," he tsks. In a blink of an eye, the glass falls to the floor, shattering, and he's holding his gun aimed directly at Regulus.

"You're outnumbered here," Regulus informs him sharply. "Get out of New York City and never come back."

Lucius laughs, "Brave talk, but I'll have to decline." Regulus opens his mouth to reply when Lucius gives them a twisted smile. "You see, the Malfoys are going to run this city from here on out."

Sirius' stomach turns sour at the sight of Lucius' smile. He talks before he makes a conscious decision to. "What makes you think that?"

"I know your secret and it will be the Blacks' downfall," he tells them. Before either of them can ask, a shot rings out, loud and clear, and Regulus slowly falls to the ground. "You care too much about your brother, Sirius."

Sirius grabs his brother without a second thought. Regulus gasps as his knees hits the floor.

"Get him, Sirius!" Regulus breathes out. "Get him."

Sirius feels tears well in his eyes. He shakes his head. "No. We've got to get you safe. They can fix you, save you."

"S—" his brother gurgles.

He half-drags, half-carries Regulus towards the door. His brother just makes sounds of pain as he pulls him along, his brother's body getting heavier with each passing moment. Even if he could get Regulus out of here, Sirius knows in the back of his mind that there is no way to save him, but he has to try.

There will be nothing left for him if Regulus dies.

He stumbles and they go down, hard. Regulus doesn't make a noise, which makes Sirius scramble to crouch next to him, tears flowing freely now. "Don't you die, Reg. Don't you dare!"

Regulus lips twitch for half a moment. Sirius watches as his chest fails to rise after he inhales.

He's not sure how long he sits there, in the middle of the docks, crying as he waits for Regulus' chest to rise again. The sun rises and Sirius has to admit that Regulus isn't going to breathe again.

He pushes himself up. He'll avenge Regulus and then he's going to get out of this life. For now, he has a brother to bury.

* * *

Sirius leans against the wall of a building. His hands are shaking as he smokes one cigarette after another, trying to relax. He's changed and washed the blood off his hands, but his hands still shake. He's never gotten used to taking another life.

Relief floods his body when the woman from the bar turns the corner. There is a lanky man walking next to her, his dark hair messy and gesturing with his hands as he talks. Sirius can tell the exact moment she sees him; she pauses, causing the man next to her to look around for what she's wary of.

She says something that he can't understand before she walks past him with her companion and opens a door. Sirius can't tell if it's an invitation or not, but he slips through the door behind the pair.

For the second time in the last few days, Sirius is staring down the barrel of a gun. He holds his hands up in surrender. "This discussion does not require a weapons discharge!"

The redhead says sharply, "We'll be the judge of that. Speak fast."

"I want out," he answers, not even trying to hide his intentions. "You have no connection to my family or to the Malfoys, but you do have connections with the black market here. I need to be smuggled out. I can't continue with this life."

"Put down the gun, James," she orders softly. The two of them share a look that Sirius doesn't understand.

James lowers the pistol in his hand. "I'll show you the sitting room."

Sirius doesn't question it; he follows the other man quietly. The sitting room is small, but he doesn't mind. He takes a seat. It's a few minutes of silence before she comes into the room with a tray of drinks, two glasses of Amortentia and another of water.

"How'd you find me?"

Huffing out a laugh, Sirius replies, "Everyone talks for a price. The money you stole that night was only a portion of what I have."

"Why would you want out? From the rumors at the Blind Pig, you have been sending a very bloody message to the Malfoys that your family was the only one to own the streets of New York," she says. She picks up her cigarette holder and James lights it for her unquestioningly. He can see the glint of jewelry on their left hands.

"Must everything you say be so blunt?" James asks as she takes a drag.

She gives him a grin. "What's the point in talking in riddles and metaphors? Small talk, it's never been my forté," she tells Sirius. "Always been a little too impatient for it."

Sirius shifts minutely. The woman in front of him is still a mystery; while the other patrons offered up information, not all of it was reliable and none of it included her name. He doesn't like having to rely on someone he doesn't know inside and out, but all the information pointed to a woman who could help him. So he finds himself telling her all of his secrets with little to no encouragement.

"My father and I have...creative differences, you could say. The only reason I followed in his footsteps was my brother," he says, swallowing thickly as he twisted his hands. "Reg, he was so much like my father. I knew he was going to get himself killed, so I did everything to protect him. It wasn't enough this time."

When he looked up, the two strangers have pitying looks on their faces. He's about to snap at them not to pity him when there's a knock on the door. James goes to answer the door.

When he comes back, he's holding a bunch of red roses and a note. His face is grim as he hands the roses and note to her. "How did they find us?"

He has a sinking feeling in his stomach that he lead the Malfoys straight to her.

She discards the roses and reads the note. She pulls James into a whispered conversation that Sirius can only understand every third word, and none of them make sense.

"What does it say?" Sirius asks, his curiosity getting the better of him again.

She grimaces as she says, "A recruitment offer by the Malfoys."

He looks between the two of them. It's obvious that she doesn't want to accept the Malfoys' offer, but he doesn't understand why. She's one of the best con artists he's met.

When he voices his questions, her eyes flicker to her husband. She caresses her stomach protectively. "I don't want to raise a baby in this life, James."

It takes a moment for him to register her words. He sweeps her up in his arms, an impossibly blinding smile on his face.

As much as he doesn't want to interrupt their moment, he coughs awkwardly. The pair look at him. "Do you have a way to be smuggled out of country? Because I will pay for all of us to disappear and stay gone. Preferably soon."

He wants to be far away before Abraxas realizes his son has been murdered.

James shakes his head, not letting go of his wife. "Do you really think we don't have the money to leave? We have someone who will help us. What do you say, Lily?"

She surveys Sirius once more, and he tries not to fidget under her intense green eyes. After a moment, she says, "Remus won't mind one extra person. If he's well paid."

"We need to make this fast," he tells her. "The Malfoys aren't known for their patience."

She gives him a smile, beautiful and deadly. "I'm not known for mine either. This time tomorrow, we will be out of the country. How do you feel about New Zealand?"

There's something about her confidence that makes him snort. "One of the least likely places that a Black would go."

"There are arrangements we must see to them, Mr Black," James announces.

"You can call me Sirius," he corrects. "How can I be of assistance?"

He can't believe he's going to get the one thing he's wanted his whole life—freedom—all thanks to the two people in front of him. Maybe something good can come of this tragedy.

* * *

Hogwarts, assignment 12, Gardening Task 10: Flowers - Write about a character with a floral name.

Balloon: (AU) 1920s

Chocolate frogs: (gold) Write about Sirius Black

Eagle: 1. Lisa Turpin: (dialogue) "It must be boring to be you."; (AU) mafia

Film: 21. Word - Secrets

Days: Red Rose Day: Write about someone being gifted with red roses.

Summer: (word) Relax

Colors: Champagne

Birthstones: Moonstone - (dialogue) "I don't dress like this to impress men. I dress like this because I want to."

Flowers: Foxglove - (word) Heart

Fire Element: (pairing) James/Lily

Shay's musical: 38. write about a murder

Gryffindor: Sirius Black

Star chart: Prompt: (scenario) Character finding out they are pregnant.

World cup: James/Lily

Holmes: Amortentia

Insane: 197. The Blind Pig

365: 215. Potion - Amortentia

Character Appreciation: 4. (word) Rival

Disney: C6. Write about someone who seduces for deceit.

Showtime: 5. (word) Impossible

Buttons: D1. "This discussion does not require a weapons discharge!", W3. Encouragement

Lyrics: 12. Dismissed every rule to abide by

Lo's Lowdown: 8. Gaila - (trait) redhead


End file.
